The availability of wireless communication devices, such as cellular telephones, paging devices, personal digital assistants, and the like allows users of such devices to order or request services from virtually any location in the world. For example, to order a transportation service, one may call a dispatcher for a given transportation service, notify the dispatcher of the location where the service is needed, i.e., the pickup location, the type of service requested, e.g., limo, taxi, etc., and the destination. The service provider, in this example the dispatcher, may retain a profile of its regular customers, which may include home address, business address, preferred manner of payment, preferred service type, etc. In all cases, the dispatcher must be informed of the pickup location. That is, even if the dispatcher knows the user's home or business address from the user's profile, it must be informed if the pickup is from the user's home or business or another location.
Once the order is placed with the dispatcher, in certain instances it is necessary to give the user instructions so that the service may be rendered. Continuing with the car service example outlined above, once the user has placed the order for a vehicle, the dispatcher will generally need to let the user know the car number, e.g., taxi/limousine number, license plate number, etc., so the user can identify the vehicle once it arrives. The user may require additional information, such as a location at an airport to wait for the vehicle to arrive.
When the service has been rendered, the user must pay for the service. While the user may pay with cash, the user may want to pay with a credit or debit card. Paying with a credit/debit card requires the vehicle driver to take information from the credit/debit card, either manually or by swiping the card in a reader; communicating the debit/credit card information to the dispatcher; obtaining an approval code from the dispatcher; and obtaining the users signature on a credit/debit card receipt. Completing the transaction may therefore delay the user.